The Average Rainfall in a Fresh Water Ecosystem

Rain in freshwater ecosystems aide in restoring our precious natural resource. According to National Geographic, 70 percent of our global water use comes from freshwater and over half of that water is wasted.

Freshwater ecosystems are important to our environment.

Geography

The average rainfall that a freshwater ecosystem receives depends on the geographic location. According to Blue Planet Biomes, tropical rainforests receive 50 to 260 inches of rain per year.

Significance

The Consortium for Atlantic Regional Assessment states that any change in temperature can result in higher evaporation rates, which results in lower stream flow. Higher rainfall rates can ensure that this does not happen.

Benefits

Maintaining freshwater ecosystems is important to a wide variety of wildlife and marine life. According to National Geographic, freshwater ecosystems support 12 percent of the world's animal population and 40 percent of all fish species.

Types

Types of freshwater ecosystems include lakes and ponds, streams and rivers and wetlands. Each zone ranges in size from a span of a few feet to hundreds of miles. Each freshwater ecosystem is dependent on rainfall to sustain life.